MHA / MPH / Healthcare MBA Scholarships
Getting your master’s degree in a healthcare administration field means that you’ll qualify for higher-paying jobs that give you more responsibilities and better benefits. The number one reason why those working in this industry choose to not go back to school is the expense. To get your MHA, MPH, or Healthcare MBA, you’ll have to spend at least one or two years as full-time student, and even with online schools, tuition and related costs can be astronomical. So how can you raise the money to go back to school? For many students, scholarships make advanced education possible.
Scholarships are a great source of money because they don’t have to be repaid, as is the case with student loans. In addition, they work well for healthcare administrators because they’re given based on merit, rather than financial need. If you’re currently working in the healthcare field, you might not qualify for certain grants or loan programs, since you’re making a full-time income. Scholarships make it possible to get money for school, which is necessary for many students who need to support families at the same time and can’t afford to quit their jobs.
So what scholarship programs are available? The following organizations could have programs to help you get your advanced degree:
- National Health Service Corps: These scholarships are available to US students who are pursing healthcare degrees as master’s students. You might qualify for not just tuition, but also a monthly living stipend.
- The Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions Scholarship of Excellence: Every Allied Health school can nominate one student for this scholarship, so if you go to any of those schools, you can qualify for this scholarship.
In addition, a number of schools offer scholarships directly to their students. Schools typically offer a few different types of scholarships for master’s degrees students. Fellowships work just like scholarships do for bachelor’s degree students, though often include a stipend to help pay for living costs. Research assistantships and teaching assistantships, on the other hand have master’s degree students do upper-level research in their field or teach undergraduate classes in exchange for free tuition. These also sometimes include a stipend. Fellowships are obviously the best funding source, since you can focus fully on your education with this kind of scholarship, as opposed to research and teaching assistantships, where you have to spend time working to qualify for the money.
Scholarships aren’t your only source of funding if you want to get your MHA, MPH, or Healthcare MBA. In addition to grants and loans, you can also check out tuition programs available from your employers. If you’re currently working in the healthcare field, your employer may have funds available to employees who want to get advanced degrees. Although master’s degree education can be expensive, with the financial aid available, you shouldn’t completely count out going back to school for an advanced degree.
